MOSCOW, March 31. /ITAR-TASS/. The Russian group of inspectors is to make a successive observation flight aboard a Russian An-30B observation plane over the territories of Benelux countries and Germany. Sergei Ryzhkov, head of the national Nuclear Risk Reduction Center, told Itar-Tass that the flight would be made in implementation of the international Treaty on Open Skies (TOS).
The observation flight will be made within a period from March 31 to April 5 from the Brussels Open-Skies airfield. The maximum range of the flight will be 1,300 km. An observation flight is made to promote greater openness in the military activities of states that are Parties to the Treaty and facilitate security through enhancement of confidenc-building measures," Ryzhkov said.
The Russian observation plane will make the flight along an air route fixed wit the sides subject to TOS observation while specislidts of Benelux countries and Germany on board the plane will monitor the procedure for the use of observation instrumentation and compliance with the TOS provisions, he added.
This will be this year's fifth observation flight of Russian inspectors over the the territories of countries that are Parties to the TOS.